designation study: lowry hill east historic district

This draft is a work in progress, with preliminary conclusions only, posted for the purpose of soliciting property owner comments.

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DESIGNATION STUDY:

April 15, 2015

LOWRY HILL EAST RESIDENTIAL HISTORIC DISTRICT Minneapolis


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Mayor and City Council of the City of Minneapolis Betsy Hodges, Mayor Barbara Johnson, Council President Elizabeth Glidden, Council Vice President Kevin Reich Alondra Cano Cam Gordon Lisa Bender Jacob Frey John Quincy Blong Yang Andrew Johnson Abdi Warsame Linea Palmisano Lisa Goodman Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission Laura Faucher, Chair Paul Bengtson Alex Haecker Chris Hartnett Susan Hunter Weir Ginny Lackovic Linda Mack Dan Olson Ian Stade Constance Vork Minneapolis City Planning Commission Theodore Tucker, Chair Rebecca Gagnon Council Member Lisa Bender Ryan Kronzer Mathew Brown Alissa Luepke-Pier Ben Gisselman John Slack Meg Forney Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) Craig Taylor, CPED Executive Director Steve Poor, Development Services Interim Director Alex Young, CPED Graduate Student Intern, Andrew Frenz, Graduate Intern, with Dr. John Smoley, Principal Investigators


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TABLE OF CONTENTS Designation Study Purpose and Backgroundpage 4 Part 1: Physical Description of the District......page 7

Description of buildings in the district Description of interior features Description of landscape and landscape features

Part 2: Discussion of Historic Significance..page 11

Streetcar Related and Residential Development Patterns Queen Anne and Colonial Revival Architectural Style Early Master Architects and Master Builders in Minneapolis

Part 3: Rationale for Local Historic Designation..page 18

Designation Criteria Integrity of historic resource

Part 4: Registration and Classification Information...page 26 Part 5: Photographs, drawings, and other documentspage 137

Figure 1. Preliminary Map of District, Contributing and Non-Contributing Properties, Surrounding Neighborhood Context, 26

Figure 2 Aerial view of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District, source, Bing, 137

Figure 3. 2005 reconnaissance survey results, boundaries of Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District, source: Lowry Hill East Neighborhood of Minneapolis Historic Resources Inventory, Properties Recommended for Intensive Research, Prepared for: Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association, Mead & Hunt September 2005, 138

Figure 4. 2008 intensive level survey results, expanded boundaries of Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District, source: Historic Resources Inventory, Historic Resources in the Loring Park and Elliot Park Neighborhoods, Re-survey of the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood, Prepared for: The City of Minneapolis, Mead & Hunt, July 2008, Appendix A-1, 139

Figure 5. Lowry Hill East, Sunnyside and Lyndale Additions, district outlined in solid red line, streetcar lines shown in dashed red lines, source: C.M. Foote & Co. Atlas of the City of Minneapolis, Plate 36. 1892, 140


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Figure 6. East Side of Bryant Avenue South from West 24th Street, 2014, source: CPED files, 141

Figure 7. West side of Bryant Avenue South from West 24th Street, 2014, source: CPED files, 142

Figure 8. West side of Colfax Avenue South from West 24th Street, 2014, source: CPED files, 143

Notespage 144 Appendix A: Action initiating nomination Appendix B: Nomination staff report Appendix C: HPC Actions from Nomination hearing Appendix D: Letter to SHPO (forthcoming) Appendix E: Letter from SHPO (forthcoming) Appendix F: Memorandum to City Planning Commission (forthcoming) Appendix G; Staff report to Heritage Preservation Commission (forthcoming) Appendix H: HPC Actions from Designation hearing (forthcoming) Appendix I: Request for Council Action (forthcoming) Appendix J: Zoning and Planning Committee Actions (forthcoming) Appendix K: Actions of the Full City Council (forthcoming) Appendix L: Publication in Finance and Commerce (forthcoming)


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Designation Study Purpose and Background The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is a largely intact collection of late nineteenth and early twentieth century single family residences. This district comprises the work of prominent local architects and builders in the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles. This district was first identified as a potential historic resource in 2005 by the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association (LHENA). This study identified the buildings on the east and west sides of Bryant Avenue South in between West 24th and West 25th Streets.1 A 2008 reconnaissance survey funded by the City of Minneapolis expanded on the scope of this district. The evaluators recommended that this portion of the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood should be incorporated as a local historic district. In February, 2015 Council Member Lisa Bender submitted an application for nomination to the City of Minneapolis Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) for the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District situated within portions of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South, the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Bryant Avenue South, Aldrich Avenue South, 811 and 911 24th Street West. After completing an initial review, CPED recommended to the Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC) on February 17, 2015 that this district exhibited at least one of the local designation criteria found in section 599.210 of the Heritage Preservation Ordinance. The HPC adopted CPEDs findings and placed the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District under interim protection and called for a designation study to be conducted. This Study is intended to fulfill the requirements for local historic designation outlined in title 23, Chapter 599.230 of Minneapolis Code of Ordinances. The study is based on a review of resources including: the 2005 LHENA study, the 2008 Mead & Hunt survey, City of Minneapolis Context Studies, City of Minneapolis Building Permits, City of Minneapolis Directories, Minneapolis HPC building inventory forms, CPED staff photos, Historic building photos from the Hennepin County Librarys Norton & Peel Collection, Historic Maps from the University of Minnesotas Borchert Map Library including Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps from 1912-1930, and an 1892 Atlas of Minneapolis compiled by H.W. Benneke. Significant contributions to the research for this study were made by Mead & Hunt; the firm completed a reconnaissance study and draft for a designation study for the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood in 2008 entitled, Historic Resources Inventory: Historic Resources in the Loring Park and Elliot Park Neighborhoods, Re-survey of Lowry Hill East Neighborhood. This study is largely an update and refinement of the 2008 Mead & Hunt survey commissioned by the City of Minneapolis.


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BASIC PROPERTY INFORMATION

Current name Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District Historic Name Lowry Hill East/Wedge Neighborhood Current Address Portions of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue

South, the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Bryant Avenue South, Aldrich Avenue South, and 911 24th Street West.

Historic Address Portions of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South, the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Bryant Avenue South, Aldrich Avenue South, 811 and 911 24th Street West.

Original Construction Date 1882-1913, various additions during and after this

Original Contractor T.P. Healy, Henry Ingham, and others Original Architect, Master builder, engineer, designer, artist, or craftsmen

William Kenyon, Edward S. Stebbins, William Channing Whitney, and others

Historic Use Residential/Dwelling/Single Family/Duplex Current Use Residential/Dwelling/Single Family/Duplex Ward: Ward 10 Neighborhood: Residential/Dwelling/Single Family/Duplex


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PART 1: PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE DISTRICT Lowry Hill East is a residential neighborhood located southwest of downtown Minneapolis. It is bounded by Hennepin Avenue on the west, Lyndale Avenue on the east, and Lake Street on the south. These major arterial streets form a triangular boundary that is the inspiration for the colloquial nickname of this area the Wedge Neighborhood. The neighborhood was platted in a grid pattern and the predominant buildings are late nineteenth and early twentieth century residential properties. Commercial properties are located along Hennepin Avenue, Lyndale Avenue, and Lake Street. The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is within the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood and encompasses the 2400 blocks of Bryant Avenue South and Colfax Avenue South, the four southernmost buildings on the east side of the 2300 block of Bryant Avenue South, and six properties on the west side of the 2300 and 2400 block of Aldrich Avenue South. The district includes 54 residential properties, which include single family houses, duplexes and apartment buildings. The majority of construction dates range from 1882 to 1920. Buildings are positioned on one-half-block-deep lots with alleys, with detached garages located at the rear of the lot. Houses within the district feature wood balloon-frame construction and retain original horizontal siding and fenestration patterns, consisting mainly of double-hung sashes and fixed windows. Most houses feature stone foundations, unless otherwise described. House heights range from two to two-and-one-half stories and were constructed primarily in the Colonial Revival architectural style. This style is generally characterized by symmetrical facades, emphasis of a central front entry and the balanced and symmetrical placement of rectangular shaped windows. Palladian window placements are common, as are fanciful dormers; single story front porches are supported with columns decorated by capitals of the classical orders.2 Six properties were constructed in the Queen Anne style of architecture and possess character defining features of this style. The streetscapes of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District are created by the interplay of high pitched rooflines, open balustrade front porches, and bay windows set alongside tree-lined boulevards. These elements are typical of this period of neighborhood residential design.3 As a whole, these intact resources possess physical characteristics that form a concentration of residential buildings with continuity of design and visual appearance through the use of similar setbacks, proportion, scale, material and use of ornamentation. The two apartment buildings in the district have minimal architectural style but clearly exhibit some Colonial Revival stylistic elements. Residences with alterations that have resulted in loss of historic integrity or that were constructed after the period of significance or that were not built in the Queen Anne or Colonial Revival styles do not contribute to this pattern. The boundaries of this district enclose a continuous area collectively retains integrity, especially the aspects of feeling and association that are lacking outside the district boundaries.


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All of the properties built within the period of significance that are considered non-contributing due to exterior changes resulting in a loss of integrity can have this status reevaluated in the event that they are restored. Description of buildings in the district The south side of the 900 block of 24th Street West contains two houses. The west side of the 2300 block of Aldrich Avenue South includes two houses. The west side of the 2400 block of Aldrich Avenue South includes three houses and one small apartment building. The east side of the 2300 block of Bryant Avenue South includes three houses and one apartment building. The east side of the 2400 block of Bryant Avenue South includes 11 houses. The west side of the 2400 block of Bryant Avenue South includes 11 houses. The east side of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South includes 11 houses The west side of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South includes 10 houses. When available, City of Minneapolis building permits and index cards provided the construction dates and the name(s) of the original property owner, which is included into the historic name of the property. If a building permit was not available, in 2008, professional evaluators Mead & Hunt estimated the date of construction from historic mapping and from comparison to adjacent properties. City of Minneapolis building permits were used to identify repairs, alterations and additions to properties. The propertys inventory number and date of construction are located in parentheses. Each property is also keyed to the attached map of the district and is identified as a contributing or non-contributing resource.

Description of secondary buildings

Garages, converted barns, and carriage houses associated with the residences in the district are counted as separate resources. These buildings are considered to be contributing, non-contributing, or non-contributing additions. They are identified in a map and key.

Description of interior features The properties in this district are low-density residences occupied by either private property owners or their respective tenants. The only opportunity that


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members of the public have to view the interiors of these dwellings is on an invitation-only basis. For these reasons, while staff encourages the preservation of interior historic features, the interiors of these properties are not suitable for designation.

Description of landscape and landscape features The topography can generally be characterized gentle and sloping. The streetscapes are populated by a mixture of mature and young tree plantings, perennial shrubs and flowers are common throughout the district and have been added over the years by residents within the district. Street lamps are placed regularly along the boulevard and appear to date to the neighborhoods period of significance.

Topography, terrain, and vegetation The terrain within this part of the Lowry Hill East neighborhood has a gentle slope to it that provides for drainage towards Lyndale Avenue, but it can generally be characterized as flat. Historic photos show houses surrounded by smooth grass terraces. Young tree plantings are evident in the front yards and boulevards, new concrete steps lead from the sidewalk.4 Residential buildings are setback from the sidewalks, boulevards are lined with regularly spaced trees and plantings spaced throughout intermittently. Houses are situated a few feet above the grade of the street on sloped terrain. Vegetation Trees are planted uniformly along the boulevards, approximately every thirty feet of so. Within the private lots trees appear to be planted where residents desired shade and the associated amenities of nearby trees. Over time, the planting of vegetation appears to have evolved; older trees that have died from age or disease or that have been damaged in storms have been replaced by younger plantings. By-in-large, the placement of shrubs and perennial flowers appear to have been placed informally according to the intentions of owners seeking to beautify their properties. Tree species are generally a mix of trees common to the city maples and locusts are most common on the boulevards, there are some walnuts, gingkoes, a couple of red pines and a few old elms. Ornamental trees places in front yards are flowering cherry and crab apple trees and river birches. Perennial shrubs and flowers planted are common to the region and consist generally of hostas, flox, lilies, ferns, Brown-Eyed-Susans, prairie grasses, Russian Sage, roses, peonies, and hydrangeas to name a few. In some of more well-maintained properties, planter pots display annual plantings.

Other landscape features


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Fences, gates, screens, retaining walls, and privacy walls: A select few properties exhibit low fences and gates in the front of the properties as landscape features. A few more have had retaining walls built on the front of the property. These elements appear to have been added spontaneously, over time, due to the efforts of owners seeking to improve their properties. Fences, in general, are located towards the rear of the properties when they are present. Driveways, walkways, patios, and garden paths: Originally when platted, streets were dirt paved. Eventually they were paved over with asphalt. Alleys cut through the middle of the blocks and appear to be paved entirely in asphalt. Vehicular access is along the main streets and avenues, and through the alleys where power and service lines are run through, suspended by posts. Garage access is generally from the alleys. Several properties, such as the Gluek house at 2447 Bryant Avenue, have driveways with access to the street, in these cases the driveways are paved in concrete or have been recovered in asphalt. With the exception of 2400 Colfax Avenue South, which has garage access off of 24th Street West, the entire west side of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South has private driveway access off of Colfax Avenue South. Concrete is the material used in the sidewalks and in the boulevard walks that access the street from the sidewalk and the sidewalk to the entry of each residence. Concrete is the predominant material used in porch entry steps. In some cases, wood is employed as a porch entry material. Brick pavers are used in a few cases as a walkway material from the sidewalk up to the residential entry.

Conclusions: Overall, the general features of the landscape are shared throughout the district and contribute to a cohesive visual pattern. While the landscape does not exhibit a rare or unique design, but through its maintenance and upkeep, the feeling and association of a turn-of-the-twentieth century neighborhood is achieved.


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PART 2: DISCUSSION OF HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE Streetcar Related and Residential Development Patterns Due to its associations with historic patterns of residential development, this portion of the Lowry Hill East neighborhood represents a local trend in the expansion of the city from its downtown core. In 1884 a horsecar line was in place on Lyndale Avenue, by 1893 the system had been electrified and Hennepin Avenue and Lake Street were serviced by streetcars (Figure 3).5 The cultural geography of Minneapolis had changed from that of a walking city into a city of neighborhoods surrounding a downtown business district, aided by the expansion of the streetcar system.6 Streetcars reshaped the residential character of Minneapolis and directly influenced the street layout of the Lowry Hill East neighborhood. This neighborhood was developed as a typical example of the streetcar suburb where urban development followed the expansion of public transit service.7 At the same time, electricity, telephones and indoor plumbing were becoming standard features in the construction of middle-class homes. Additionally, ease of access to shopping and employment opportunities owed much to the development of the streetcar system. This added to the appeal and convenience of living in a streetcar suburb that was developed for the comforts expected by the emerging affluent and middle-class citizens who were relocating south of downtown.8 With the expansion of the streetcar system, development in Minneapolis resulted in the development of neighborhoods that were located nearby parks and recreation spaces. Excursions to Lake Harriet, Minnehaha Park and the State Fairgrounds became more convenient and affordable for city residents and it became easier to enjoy the amenities of the Twin Cities area.9 Local historians John Diers and Aaron Isaacs remind us that Minneapolis and the streetcar grew up together.10 The Sunnyside and Lyndale Avenue Additions are located at the northern edge of the Lowry Hill East neighborhood. This is where the boundaries of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District are located. The entire Lowry Hill East neighborhood was platted by about a dozen real estate developers by 1882. At this point speculative house construction in this area commenced. Areas developed for settlement by the newly middle and upper classes were now accessible by streetcars and early automobiles.11 The Sunnyside and Lyndale Avenue Additions were promoted as part of a fashionable residential development area for middle-class families during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These lots were well suited for the construction of spacious homes. The top-quality buildings in the Sunnyside and Lyndale Avenue additions were created in tandem by the master builders and architects working for clients of the growing middle class. Many smaller lots intended for less costly workingmans housing were concentrated in the southern section of the neighborhood south of West 26th Street.12 Between 1900 and 1938 several brick apartment buildings were constructed in popular styles fashionable for their times north of West 22nd Street along Franklin and Hennepin Avenues.13


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Queen Anne and Colonial Revival Architectural Style The residences in the district are a cohesive collection of houses built in high fashion for their time, namely in the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles.14 The Queen Anne architectural style was made popular during this time through the distribution of pattern books.15 The character defining features of the Queen Anne style are: steeply pitched and irregular shaped roof lines, with a dominant front-facing gable, patterned shingles, bay windows, and one story, full-length, often wraparound front porches. The overall appearance of the design is asymmetrical with variations in shape, and has decorative architectural features that include spindle work, half-timbering and patterned masonry.16 Due to the influence of the 1893 Worlds Columbian Exposition in Chicago, the Colonial Revival style emerged as classical architectural models became of interest again. The Colonial Revival style broke from the exuberance of the Queen Anne style and is characterized by symmetrical facades, emphasis of a central front entry and the balanced and symmetrical placement of rectangular shaped windows. Palladian window placements are common, as are fanciful dormers; single story front porches are supported with columns decorated by capitals of the classical orders.17 This portion of the Wedge Neighborhood is representative of a time in Minneapolis that historians have referred to as the golden years. because many of the Wedges early homeowners were part of a newly forming middle-class that owed their prosperity to employment opportunities that arose out of the citys late nineteenth-century industrial boom.18 The streetscapes of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District are created by the interplay of high pitched rooflines, open balustrade front porches, and bay windows set alongside tree-lined boulevards. These elements are typical of this period of neighborhood residential design dating from the end of the nineteenth to the beginning of the twentieth century.19 Early Master Architects and Master Builders in Minneapolis This remarkable collection of residences in this district developed due to the collaboration of talented local architects, builder-contractors, and the new middle and upper classes. Local newspapers promoted the value of home ownership and provided advice to the public about planning a home with a builder and /or architect.20 Architects of the neighborhood included Downs & Eads, Warren B. Dunnell, William Kenyon, Long, Lamoreaux & Long, Edward Stebbins and William Channing Whitney; Theron P. Healy and Henry Ingham were among the neighborhoods builders.21 Other architects and builders mentioned below may not be considered masters in their own right, but did have prominent careers that are worth noting in the context of this designation study. Like most of their clients, several of these architects came from other places to find their fortunes in the growing city of Minneapolis. It is worth mentioning the smaller contributions of a couple of prominent architects widely regarded as masters. These architects designed contributing additions and


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secondary buildings to a few residences within the period of significance. Mentioned previously, Boehme & Cordella, architects of the Swan Turnblad Mansion (both a local and national landmark) at 2600 Park Avenue South, designed the carriage house for the John G. Gluek house at 2447 Bryant Avenue South. In 1906 Kees and Colburn (noted for the Grain Exchange building at 4th Street and 4th Avenue South, also a local and national landmark) designed the barn for the T.P. Healy house at 2408 Colfax Avenue South (which has been altered for use as a garage). In 1911 the firm also designed renovations and a dormer for another Healy built house at 2401 Bryant Avenue South. Master Architects Downs & Eads was a prominent firm in Minneapolis from 1903 1928. It was comprised of a partnership of Harry Downs and Harold Eads. Downs was originally from St. Peter, Minnesota. He attended High School in Minneapolis and became an apprenticed as a draftsman in the firm of George and Freemont Orff. Later, he worked as a draftsman in the firm of Long and Kees until 1894 when he set up his own practice. Eads was originally from Champaign, Illinois but moved with his family to Minneapolis where he attended public schools and the University of Minnesota. He graduated in 1892 and practiced as an architect in Minneapolis for the duration of his career. Notable extant buildings in Minneapolis attributed to Downs & Eads include: the Joyce Memorial Methodist Church at 1219 West 31st Street (1907), the Williams Hardware Company Warehouse at 215 North 1st Street (1909), and the Charles Woodward residence at 2529 Irving Avenue South (1913).22 The R. K. Mattern house at 811 West 24th Street (1908) is their contribution to the district. Warren B. Dunnell was originally from Maine and moved to Minnesota with his parents in 1863. Dunnell attended the University of Minnesota before transferring to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He began working as an architect in Washington D.C., and then went on to study at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. He returned to Minnesota in 1876 where he would remain for the duration of his life. He is known primarily for designing churches, hospitals and schools.23 He is notable in the context of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District for designing his familys Queen Anne residence at 2408 Aldrich Avenue South in 1890. The house lost value and was offered for sale in 1905. The Minneapolis Journal reported:

The magnificent residence of Mr. W.B. Dunnell, the architect, corner Aldrich Avenue S. and Twenty-Fourth Street, with fine barn, three large lots, facing east. Slate roof; 12 rooms, strictly modern and up to date; hot water heat; hardwood. It is simply fine, built by day work and best materials. Cost the owner $19,000, who is going to coast to live. Will be slaughtered. $11,500 buys it. Same as finding at least $5,000.24

Apparently Dunnell never went to the coast, and in 1909 he designed a six-unit apartment building at 2400 Aldrich Avenue South on the vacant lot he owned next to the 2408 house. The Dunnells took up residence in the apartment building with their four


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children.25 Notable extant buildings in Minnesota attributed to him are the Minnesota Training School for Boys, Red Wing (1889), First Baptist Church, Owatonna (1892-93), and the Fergus State Hospital, Fergus Falls (1895).26 Walter Jewett Keith was a Minneapolis native and founded a firm around 1895 known as the Keith Company. The business produced residential building plans that were advertised in newspapers and was involved in real estate development that coincided with the time when the Lowry Hill East neighborhood was built. In 1899 Keith had 750 commissions worth more than $2 million which made him a wealthy man.27 The imposing residence at 2400 Bryant Avenue South (1901) built for George W. Cook is associated with this productive point in Keiths career and contributes to the Lowry Hill East Historic Residential District. Master architect William Kenyon was originally from New York and came to Minneapolis in 1893. He worked primarily in private practice, but had a partnership with Maurice Maine from 1913-1929. Additionally he was the chief architect for the Soo Line Railroad for twenty years and in 1909 he served for a year on the advisory board for the Greater University (of Minnesota) campus in 1909. After his partnership with Maine, he continued his private practice in Minnesota until 1935, when he retired.28 In the Lowry Hill East Historic Residential District, he designed the residence for the pickle manufacturer J.V. Gedney at 2420 Colfax Avenue South (1898), and the Georgian Revival house at 2447 Bryant Avenue South (1902) for the brewer John G. Glueck.29 The later residence can be considered one of the stateliest residences in the district and represents one of Kenyons best known works. It is listed in the National Register of Historic places and is locally designated as a Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission landmark for its architecture. Another notable building attributed to him is the Soo Line Building, at 5th Street and Marquette Avenue in downtown Minneapolis.30 It also is listed in the National Register of Historic places (NHRP) and is locally designated as a Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission landmark for its architecture.31 Long & Long was the partnership of Franklin Long and his son Louis. In the district, the house at 911 West 24th street (1908) and its later addition when the firm was renamed Long, Lamoureaux & Long represent their work. This firm and the branches of architects stemming from it compose what has been one of the most successful architectural practices in Minneapolis with a lineage that lasted for more than one hundred years. 32 James Henry Record was originally from Vermont and came to the Midwest at the age of seventeen where he first became a carpenter in Lake City, Minnesota before moving to La Crosse, Wisconsin to learn more about the building trade. He moved to Minneapolis in 1881 where he began working for Lewis Barnett, another notable local architect. Together the two were experienced in building grain elevators and in 1885 the two formed a partnership, Barnett & Record that is noted for designing the Pillsbury A-Mill Grain Elevators at 301 Main Street Southeast (1910, 1914, and 1916). However, Record sold his interest in the firm in in 1902. He eventually became chairman of the


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board for the Minneapolis-Moline Plow Company and held this position until his death in 1944.33 While he specialized in designing grain elevators and warehouses, City Directories confirm that he was working and residing in Minneapolis during the time when 2428 Colfax Avenue South (1906) and 2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South (1893) were constructed in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District.34 Master architect Edward S. Stebbins was originally from Boston. He studied architecture at MIT, and in France, and worked in New York City with the firm of McKim, Mead & White. Stebbins came to Minneapolis in 1877 where he remained for the rest of his life.35 It is widely believed that he was one of the first architects in Minneapolis to have received a formal architectural education.36 He was a charter member of the Architectural Association of Minnesota (1881) and also served for a time as president of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.37 He is best known for his work as the official architect of the Minneapolis Board of Education, however his work is attributed to at least 170 residences, churches, and schools throughout Minnesota and the Midwest.38 His contribution to the Lowry Hill east Residential Historic District is the house at 2415 Bryant Avenue South, designed in the Colonial Revival style. Notable extant works of his in Minneapolis include: the Gethsemane Episcopal Church at 905 4th Avenue South (1883), locally designated as a Minneapolis HPC landmark in 1983 for its architecture and also listed in the NRHP in 1984 for its architecture, the Holy Rosary Catholic Church at 18th Avenue South and East 24th Street (1887), the D.B. Lyons residence at 419 Oak Grove Street (1892), designated in 2011 as a local HPC landmark, and the Sidney Pratt School (now Pratt Community Center) at 66 Malcom Avenue Southeast (1889-99).39 He is also known for designing the residence known as the Mary Tyler Moore House at 2104 Kenwood Parkway. Otto Krups Westphal hailed from Germany and found his way to Minneapolis by 1895 and found work as a carpenter. In 1907 he studied architecture through a correspondence course and the next year he established a private practice which he maintained for the duration of his career. He is noted for creating innovative tables that calculated stress in concrete and reinforced steel. Local noted works of his in Minneapolis include the Agate Theatre at 2221-2225 East Franklin Avenue (1915) and a commercial building with flats and offices (located in the Lyn-Lake Potential Historic District) at 810-822 West Lake Street.40 His contribution to the district is the duplex at 2410-12 Colfax Avenue South. Master architect William Channing Whitney was originally from Massachusetts where he attended MIT and received a bachelors degree in architecture from the Massachusetts Agricultural College.41 In 1877 he came to Minneapolis and formed a partnership with James Plant that lasted about five years. He opened his own private practice, which lasted for the duration of his career. His work consisted mainly of residences for the upper classes; he was regarded as one of the best architects in both Minneapolis and St. Paul. Notable extant buildings attributed to him include, the Handicraft Guild House at 89 South 10th Street in Minneapolis (1908), and the H.H. Irvine Residence (now the Governors mansion) at 1006 Summit Avenue in St. Paul (1910-1912).42 His


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contribution to the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is the Colonial Revival house at 2433 Bryant Avenue South. Master Builders The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is strongly associated with the work of the prolific master builder Theron Potter Healy. Healy was originally from Nova Scotia and according to City of Minneapolis building permits, built about thirty houses in the Wedge and Lowry Hill neighborhoods, including twelve in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District. He was not formally trained as an architect; he was a successful shipping company owner in Halifax, but after losing two ships in 1882 he suffered a great financial loss that forced him to seek his fortunes elsewhere. He left Nova Scotia and went to Bismarck, North Dakota for about a year before arriving in Minneapolis in about 1883. Healy entered the contacting business in about 1886 as a builder and developer.43 He specialized in both building and designing residences in the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival Style. Healy found his niche building and designing homes for the upper-middle class. He did design some of the houses he built, in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District he is listed as both the architect and builder/contractor of record on the original building permit for the house at 2323 Bryant Avenue South. For the other eleven properties in the district he is listed as the contactor, and on these building permits there is no listing for any architect of record. His career in Minneapolis took off at a time when architecture was a blooming profession in the United States, professional licensure was not a requirement to practice, nor was the attainment of a formal degree. Many early Minnesota architects learned their craft through apprenticeship and practice. In City Directories, he was listed as a builder/contractor, never as an architect. However, he did work in conjunction with several prominent local architects of his time, constructing buildings designed by architects such as Harry Wild Jones, Franklin Long and Fredrick Kees, William Channing Whitney and others.44 Healy is particularly noted for the Healy Block Historic District, a collection of Queen Anne residences along 2nd and 3rd Avenues South between 31st and 32nd Street (including his own residence at 3115 2nd Avenue South) that were built by him. The Healy Block was locally designated in 1989 as a historic district and was placed in the NRHP in 1993.45 The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District would represent the largest concentration of Healy houses outside of the Healy Block Historic District protected within the boundaries of a preservation district in Minneapolis. Henry Ingham, originally from England, came to Minneapolis in the 1880s in time to take part in the building boom of Queen Anne and Colonial Revival style houses that were constructed in Minneapolis in the 1890s. While his bona fides as a master builder might not be firmly established, after Healy, Ingham was the other major builder-contractor of record in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District. His contributions to the district


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are the handsome Colonial Revival dwellings at 2309, 2432, and 2444 Bryant Avenue South and 2417 Colfax Avenue South. Altogether, more than half of the properties in The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District are associated with the work of a prominent architect or builder considered significant to the heritage of the built environment of Minneapolis


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PART 3: RATIONALE FOR LOCAL HISTORIC DESIGNATION Local historic designation is an official action that promotes the preservation of historic resources by recognizing specific people, places, and events that are deemed to be significant in relation to the history and heritage of Minneapolis. Through the requirements set out in the Heritage Preservation chapter of the Citys Code of Ordinances, the act of designation establishes a series of protections that are administered through the ordinance to ensure protection of significant places throughout the city against demolition or in appropriate alterations. Designation Criteria Title 23, Chapter 599.210 of Minneapolis Code of Ordinances lists seven criteria which are considered when trying to determine whether a property is worthy of local designation as a landmark because of its particular significance. The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is considered below in relation to each of the seven designation criteria.

Criterion #1: The district is associated with significant events or with periods that exemplify broad patterns of cultural, political, economic, or social history.

The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic district appears to be historically significant due to its associations with broad patterns of residential development related to the expansion of the Minneapolis streetcar system as discussed in part two of this study Criterion #2: The district is associated with the lives of significant persons or groups.

The northern subdivisions of the Wedge neighborhood where the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is located became home to the citys newly upper-middle class residents. Professions of this population consisted of lawyers, doctors, small business owners and managers of the milling and railroad companies and factories. Most of these residents hailed from the East Coast, and were active in social clubs and civic organizations. Many residents were committed church members. Middle-class women typically stayed at home, one or two servants were employed in each household and children went to public schools. Many of these first residents could afford to hire prominent architects and builders to construct a house and financed these investments with a bank mortgage. 46 Staff research has not found that the properties of the district, as a whole, bear strong association with persons of particular significance to local or national history. One resident of potential significance was Isadore Gedney, of the M.A.


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Gedney Pickling Company, a producer of pickles, vinegar, and various sauces with factories in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and Mauston, WI. At the time that Gedney lived at 2420 Colfax Avenue South, the Gedney Pickling Company had approximately 60 employees in Minneapolis.47 Also of potential significance is Isaac P. Lennan, resident of 2437 Colfax Avenue South and manager at I.P. Lennan & Company, a lumber dealer.48 Another resident of potential significance was Gotlieb Scherber, president of the Phoenix Mill Company and resident of 2412 Bryant Avenue South.49 Henry Hahn, resident of 2421 Bryant Avenue South, is also of potential significance. Hahn was a partner at Hahn & Harmon, a printer, as well as foreman at the Miller Publishing Company. It appears that Mr. Hahn was responsible for printing operations for the Northwestern Miller.50 Of independent significance is John G. Gluek, resident of 2447 Bryant Avenue and son of Gottlieb Gluek, founder of the Mississippi Brewery. John and his brother grew the company significantly, changing the name to the better-known Gluek Brewing Company. Although these early residents of the district may have played significant roles in Minneapolis history, they are outliers, representing only five of the 55 homes in the district. Typical homeowners in the district were small business owners, professionals, and managers at larger corporations, while residents of duplexes and apartments in the district were members of both the professional and working classes. These people, while certainly contributing to the development of Minneapolis, do not rise to the level of significance meriting particular consideration. Also of note are Maud and Delos Lovelace, who resided at 2400 Aldrich Avenue South 1919-1920.51 Maud Hart Lovelace authored the popular Betsy-Tracy series 1940-1955, which enjoys a loyal following to the present. The residency of the Lovelaces occurred outside the districts period of significance, however. Moreover, due to the fact that they only resided at 2400 Aldrich Avenue South for two years, the property is not among those most associated with the couple.

Criterion #3: The district contains or is associated with distinctive elements of city or neighborhood identity. The district does not appear to be associated with distinctive elements of city or neighborhood identity. The Lowry Hill East Neighborhood began in the 1880s with the arrival of Thomas Lowrys streetcar system and gradually developed, as many neighborhoods on the fringes of urban cores have done over time when transportation options increased. Criteria #4: The district embodies the distinctive characteristics of an architectural or engineering type or style, or method of construction. The district appears to embody the distinctive characteristics of the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival architectural styles as discussed in part two of this study.


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Criteria #5: The district exemplifies a landscape design or development pattern distinguished by innovation, rarity, uniqueness or quality of design or detail. The district does not appear to exemplify a landscape design or development pattern distinguished by innovation, rarity, uniqueness or quality of design or detail. Landscaping and development pattern in the district is typical to landscaping found in other low- density Minneapolis neighborhoods defined by a regular city grid pattern, as discussed in part one of this designation study.

Criteria #6: The district exemplifies works of master builders, engineers, designers, artists, craftsmen or architects. The district appears to exemplify the work of master architects, designers, and builders as discussed in part two of this study. Criteria #7: The district has yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history. The district has not yielded information important in prehistory. Records available at the Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office indicate that no archeological sites have been identified within this district nor have any archeological surveys been conducted within the district in question. The district is not likely to yield information important in prehistory. The district is presently located approximately two miles south of the Mississippi River and one mile east of Lake of the Isles. These are the nearest pre contact bodies of water. As these features generally served as a source of water, food, and transportation, areas in close proximity (generally five hundred feet or less) to such sites have a higher than average potential to include archeological evidence from pre contact human habitation. As the subject properties are greater than five hundred feet from the Mississippi River and Lake of the Isles, they are far less likely to produce such evidence. The Mississippi Watershed Management Organization has identified wet soil features within the east part of the district and approximately two hundred feet southwest of the district.52 A plat map from 1892 shows no identifiable body of water in this area plated for development making it unlikely that the land in this district will yield any information important in prehistory. The district is unlikely to yield any below ground information important in history. All of the homes in the district were constructed with basements, making it unlikely that this area will reveal below ground resources from history. The above ground resources likely possess the most historic significance in this area.


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Integrity of historic resource The following is an assessment of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District as relates to the seven aspects of integrity as defined by the Department of the Interior:

Location: The residences in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District contained within portions of the 2400 block of Colfax Avenue South, the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Bryant Avenue South, Aldrich Avenue South, 811 and 911 West 24th Street are in their original location and thus maintain their integrity of location. This is confirmed by City of Minneapolis building permit records. Design: The houses in the district are a cohesive collection of residences built in high fashion for their time, namely in the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival architectural styles. The character defining features of the Queen Anne style include: steeply pitched and irregular shaped roof lines, typically with a dominant front-facing gable, patterned shingles, bay windows, and one story, full-length, and often wraparound front porches. The overall appearance of the design is asymmetrical, with variations in shape, and has decorative architectural features that include spindle work, half-timbering and patterned masonry.53 The Colonial Revival style broke from the exuberance of the Queen Anne Style and is characterized by symmetrical facades, centrally placed front doors and the balanced and symmetrical placement of rectangular shaped windows. Palladian window placements are common, single story front porches are supported with columns decorated with capitals of the classical orders.54 Design aesthetic is consistent throughout the district, despite minor changes to the exteriors of some individual residences. The streetscapes of the Lowry Hill East Historic Residential District are created by the interplay of high pitched rooflines, open balustrade front porches, and bay windows set alongside tree-lined boulevards all typical of the period of time dating from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century.55 This visual continuity of design is expressed throughout the district.

The present overall trend in the district is to maintain the historic design aesthetic found in the district and to restore and rehabilitate properties that have undergone alterations back to their original grandeur.

Setting: The Lowry Hill East Historic Residential District is surrounded by predominantly low-density residences and commercial buildings clustered along two north-south commercial corridors, as it did during the period of significance. The Lowry Hill East Historic Residential District retains its integrity of setting.

Materials: Many district buildings have retained their integrity of materials in large part due to the efforts of the current and past owners who undertook ongoing maintenance and repair of the houses and landscapes in the district.


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The residences in the district are wood-frame construction with clapboard siding, fenestration consists mainly of double-hung sashes and fixed windows. The residences exhibit stone foundations, full-width columned porches, bay windows, lead cut glass and stained glass windows, Palladian window placements, decorative cornices, pediments, dentils and soffit brackets. Front entrances are accentuated by millwork and chimneys are articulated in brick. While some buildings no longer retain integrity of materials due to replacement of original materials of unknown specifications, the compatibility of replacement materials evident on buildings enables the properties to contribute to the significance of the district.

Workmanship: The district exhibits an array of workmanship that is evident in the construction of the residences in the district. The Colonial Revival and Queen Anne homes are wood-frame construction with predominately horizontal wood siding painted in complimentary color schemes. The architectural details typically include: stone foundations, brick chimneys, column porch supports, bay windows, lead cut glass windows, decorative scrollwork, medallions, and dentils, all of which are evidence of the integrity of workmanship that is retained in this district. These features are in keeping with photographic records and building permit records. Despite minor alterations, overall the workmanship generally conveys original artistic intent. Feeling: As a whole, the entire district presents remarkable visual cohesiveness, and along with this unity, the feeling of a low-density, urban, middle-class neighborhood that was fashionable around the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century in Minneapolis. The scale, form and function of the district are unaltered, even the streetlights appear to date to the period of significance. The complimentary color schemes of the houses combined with the architectural ornamentation evoke the feeling of a fashionable Victorian-era residential neighborhood. Boulevard tree plantings have matured and the streets have been paved, however the district strongly retains integrity of feeling. Association: Through the retention of decorative architectural details which have been well maintained, the integrity of association is strongly retained. The decorative scrollwork, spindles, and medallions, painted in complimentary color schemes are associated with the late Victorian era in Minneapolis. The tree-lined boulevards form a canopy over the sidewalk that is associated with this type of residential development that occurred in Minneapolis during the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. Conclusions: As a whole, the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is an intact collection of residences built largely in the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles that dates to the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. The majority of these properties retain their historic integrity to


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form a cohesive concentration of residential buildings with continuity in physical plan and design. Collectively, these resources retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association.

Conclusion: In the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District 44 out of 54 properties retain integrity and are thus considered to be contributing resources. Two properties do not contribute because they were built outside of the period of significance, two more propertied do not contribute because they were not built in the Queen Anne or Colonial Revival style. Six properties do not contribute due to a loss of integrity. Garages are considered secondary structures, if built within the period of significance, and if they retain integrity, they are considered contributing only if the main residence that they are associated with is considered a contributing resource. Ten garages were built within the period of significance, retain their integrity, and are considered to be contributing to the district. The properties within the district boundaries built within the period of significance that have lost integrity due to exterior changes can have their contributing status re-evaluated in the event of any restoration.

Relationship to the body of locally-designated properties in Minneapolis

The City of Minneapolis designates properties that represent and reflect elements of the citys cultural, social, economic, religious, political, architectural, or aesthetic history as local heritage landmarks. As of March 2015, 161 landmarks and 12 historic districts have been designated by the City of Minneapolis, including places like the Healy Block Historic District, the John G. Gluek House, the Samuel J Hewson Residence, and the Crowell Block. The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is unique in the City of Minneapolis and among those properties currently listed as heritage landmarks and historic districts. It exemplifies the work of architects and master builders, including William Kenyon, Edward Stebbins, William Channing Whitney, Theron P. Healy, and Henry Ingham. Additionally, the district contains some of best surviving examples of the Queen Anne and Colonial Revival architectural styles in Minneapolis. The district also exemplifies the streetcar suburb development pattern. While the development of other designated properties was influenced by streetcar service, no properties have yet been designated as an example of the streetcar suburb development pattern. A few properties have been designated, or are in the process of being designated, due to their ability to communicate Minneapolis streetcar heritage. The Crowell Block, located at the intersection of Lake Street and Lyndale Avenue South, is designated in part due to its development as part of a commercial node at a streetcar transfer point. The Camden Park State Bank, a landmark located at the intersection of Lyndale Avenue North and 42nd Avenue North, is also significant due to its association with streetcar commercial nodes. The Thomas Lowry Memorial, a landmark at 2330 Hennepin Avenue, is significant for its role in communicating Minneapolis streetcar heritage as well. Some of


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the architects and master builders associated with the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District already have properties designated in part due to their significance. The Healy Block Historic District, bounded by 2nd Avenue South, 3rd Avenue South, 31st Street, and 32nd Street, is designated in part due to its significance as the work of T. P. Healy. Additionally, the homes in the district, built from 1886 to 1889, are designated in part due to their position as a cohesive group of intact Queen Anne homes. The John G. Gluek House, located at 2447 Bryant Avenue S, within the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District, has already been designated as an individual landmark, due in part to its exemplary architecture and its architect, William H. Kenyon. The Samuel J. Hewson Residence, located approximately 0.5 miles from the proposed district, has also been designated in part for its Colonial Revival architecture. In addition to the Samuel J. Hewson Residence and the John G. Gluek House, other nearby landmarks and historic districts include the Elisha Morse House, approximately 0.4 miles from the proposed district; the Washburn-Fair Oaks Historic District, approximately 0.5 miles from the proposed district; the Fowler Methodist Episcopal Church, approximately 0.2 miles from the proposed district, and the Calvary Baptist Church, approximately 0.5 miles from the proposed district. Relationship to the Minneapolis Preservation Plan The proposed designation helps fulfill the goals outlined in the 1990 Preservation Plan for the City of Minneapolis by systematically studying a series of properties for their potential for preservation. Comprehensive and Long-Range Planning Title 23, Chapter 599.260 of Minneapolis Code of Ordinances requires the planning director to submit all proposed designations to the Minneapolis City Planning Commission for review and comment on the proposed designation. In its review, the City Planning Commission shall consider but not be limited to the following factors:

(1) The relationship of the proposed designation to the city's comprehensive plan. (2) The effect of the proposed designation on the surrounding area. (3) The consistency of the proposed designation with applicable development plans

or development objectives adopted by the city council.

The relationship of the proposed designation to the city's comprehensive plan: The designation of the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is supported by Housing Policy 3.6 of the Minneapolis Plan for Sustainable Growth Foster complete communities by preserving and increasing high quality housing opportunities suitable for all ages and household types." The designation is also supported by Heritage Preservation Policy 8.1 Preserve, maintain, and designate districts, landmarks, and historic resources which serve as reminders of the citys architecture, history, and culture.


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The effect of the proposed designation on the surrounding area: The designation should preserve the cohesive fabric of this largely intact collection of Victorian and period revival homes by preventing demolitions and inappropriate alterations, and ensuring that any future development is compatible with the character of the district. The larger Lowry Hill East neighborhood is under significant development pressure for housing and commercial space. By protecting the homes in the Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District, the City will ensure that the historically significant portion of the neighborhood continues to communicate its significance for future generations. By limiting development within the designated district, the designation may contribute somewhat to the shortage of housing options in the immediate area, but will also ensure that the area remains attractive to new residents that appreciate its historic character. Additionally, the designation will ensure that in a portion of the city that is developing higher-density housing; single-family homes will remain a part of the housing mix. The consistency of the proposed designation with applicable development plans or development objectives adopted by the City Council: The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District does not fall within the boundaries of any adopted small area plan or any other adopted development plan.

National Register Status The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is not currently listed on the National Register. It appears that the district may be eligible to be added to the register under criterion A, association with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history and criterion C, embodiment of distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or representing the work of a master, or possessing high artistic values, or representing a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction. State Designation The Lowry Hill East Residential Historic District is not currently designated by the State of Minnesota. Period of Significance The period of significance is from 1882 1913. Lowry Hill East was platted for development by 1882. The first horsecar line was extended down Lyndale Avenue South in 1884. A few houses already existed in the area, soon after a boom in residential construction began. The majority of homes in Lowry Hill East were constructed before 1913.


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PART 4: REGISTRATION AND CLASSIFICATION INFORMATION Figure 1. Tentative Map of District Boundaries, Contributing and Non-Contributing Properties, and Surrounding Neighborhood Context, source: CPED


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name 811 24th Street West Property Address 811 24th Street West Historical Addresses 811 24th Street West PID 3302924140052 SHPO Inventory Number N/A STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Barn Current Use of the Primary Building Duplex Contributing Resources Within Property Secondary building (to 2401 Bryant Ave

S): Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1899 Original Owner Mrs. R.K. Mattern Architect Down & Eads Builder Comb & Sons ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Part of the same property parcel as 2401 Bryant Avenue South, the two and a half story Colonial Revival house at 811 24th Street West was originally built as a barn in 1899 for Mrs. R.K. Mattern at 2401 Bryant Avenue South. (Building permits list her as an early owner of the T. P. Healy House next door at 2401 Bryant Avenue South.) In 1908 the barn was moved to 811 West 24th Street, a foundation was added and the barn was converted to a two-and-a-half story dwelling. A separate building permit on the same date in 1908 describes alterations to both the barn and to the dwelling at 2401 Bryant Avenue South. The dwelling features clapboard siding and a steep hipped roof with gabled dormers on the north, east and south roof elevations with dentils beneath the eaves. Windows are one over one, double-hung sashes. The west roof elevation features a unique bay dormer. The main entry is placed off-center to the west, in the middle of the first level is a tripartite window with a fixed sash in the center and one over one double hung sashes to each side. The front porch features brackets beneath the eaves and an off-center pediment above the stepped entry with dentils. Unfluted Doric columns support the porch roof, spindles enclose the front porch. There is no garage on site. This property retains its integrity and is a contributing resource to the district.


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811 24th Street West, north elevation 811 24th Street West, north and east

elevations

811 24th Street West, south and east elevations

811 24th Street West, west elevation


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name 911 24th Street West Property Address 911 24th Street West Historical Addresses 911-915 24th Street West PID 3302924140065 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-6767 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family home Current Use of the Primary Building Duplex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Non-contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1908 Original Owner Unknown Architect Long & Long Builder C.F. Haglin ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The south side of the 900 block of 24th Street West contains one building. The one-and-one-half story Craftsman style double house (HE-MPC-6767, 1908) located at 911-915 24th Street West is clad in stucco with decorative brackets beneath the eaves. The division of the building into a duplex is delineated by the roofline, which includes two front gables flanking a central dormer. Below each gable is a raised entry bay. The foundation and front stoop is limestone laid in a random ashlar pattern. This pattern continues up half of the 24th Street faade on the western house. Original building permit shows that a dwelling was constructed onsite in 1908. Building permits show that in 1913 the firm of Long, Lamoureaux & Long designed alterations to the dwelling in the amount of $1,100 included the installation of a new entrance. In 1927 the dwelling was converted to a duplex. The dwelling sustained fire damage in 1990, in 2005 twelve windows were replaced in existing openings, and in 2009 the concrete stoop and steps at the entry were replaced. Building index cards show that a frame stucco garage was built onsite in 1910. It appears to have a modern replacement door. Although built during the period of significance, and appearing to retain the majority of its integrity, this house was built in the Craftsman style, therefore it is not contributing to the district, and neither is the garage.


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911 24th Street West, north elevation 911 24th Street West, west elevation

911 24th Street West, south and east elevations

911 24th Street West, east elevation


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name E.L. Brown Duplex Property Address 2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924110012 SHPO Inventory Number HC-MPS-5775 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family home Current Use of the Primary Building Four-plex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1893 Original Owner E.L. Brown Architect J.H. Record Builder A. Jordan ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two and one-half story E.L. Brown Duplex (HE-MPC-5775, 1893) at 2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South was built in the Colonial Revival style and displays a hipped front porch with square Doric fluted columns, a front-facing flared gable with wide eaves, leaded-glass transom windows, and decorative brackets. Second story projecting bay windows are on the north and south elevations, and a Palladian window in the gable end of the north elevation. There is a shed dormer on the south elevation. The rear west elevation has a three level deck that was replaced a previous one in 2007. In 1908 the residence was converted to a duplex and in 1922 the property was converted to a four-family flat. A frame garage was built in 1921 which was replaced by a new garage built in 1961. There is no garage on site at present. This property retains its integrity and is a contributing resource to the district.


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2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South, east elevation

2316-18 Aldrich Avenue South, south and east elevations

2316 Aldrich Avenue South, south and west elevations


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name 2344 Aldrich Avenue South Property Address 2344 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2344 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924110013 SHPO Inventory Number HC-MPS-5775 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family home Current Use of the Primary Building Duplex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction c. 1882 Original Owner Unknown Architect Unknown Builder Unknown ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two-story house (HE-MPC-5774, c.1882) at 2344 Aldrich Avenue South was built in the Queen Anne style. The house features a wraparound porch with fluted Doric columns, contoured shingle siding on the second story, and staggered shingles in the gable ends. Additional architectural details include leaded-glass transom windows, corner brackets, and false half-timbering in the north gable end. An 8 x10 addition to the rear was built in 1925, built as a single family residence; it was converted at some unknown time to a duplex, which it remains today. A 24 x 24 detached garage was built on the property on 2004. The garage, built after the period of significance, is not contributing. The residence retains its integrity and is a contributing resource to the district.


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2344 Aldrich Avenue South, north and east elevation

2344 Aldrich Avenue South, east elevation

2344 Aldrich Avenue South, south and east elevations

2344 Aldrich Avenue South, south elevation


2344 Aldrich Avenue South, garage, south elevation


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Warren B. Dunnell Building Property Address 2400 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2400 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924140040 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-5773 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Multi-family residential Current Use of the Primary Building Multi-family residential Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1908 Original Owner Warren B. Dunnell Architect Warren B. Dunnell Builder Peter C. Giguere ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Located at 2400 Aldrich Avenue South, the two-story William B. Dunnell Building (HE-MPC-5773, 1908) is a stucco apartment building with six units that clearly exhibits features of the Colonial Revival style. It features a low pitched hipped roof, a one-story main entrance portico with fluted Ionic columns, a decorative wrought-iron balcony, large brackets beneath the eaves, two, two-story bay windows on the north elevation and one, two-story bay window on the south elevation. In 1924 a two-story stucco addition was added onto the North West portion of the apartment building, Dunnell is listed as the architect of record for this addition. It features a flat roof with an unadorned cornice and an arched entry. There is no garage on the property. This property retains its integrity and is a contributing resource to the district.


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2400 Aldrich Avenue South, south and east elevation


2400 Aldrich Avenue South, north and west elevations

2400 Aldrich Avenue South, north and west elevations



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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Warren B. Dunnell House Property Address 2406-10 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2408 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924140041 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-5788 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Current Use of the Primary Building Triplex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Non-contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1890 Original Owner Warren B. Dunnell Architect Warren B. Dunnell Builder Kilore Bros. ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two-and-one-half story William B. Dunnell House (HE-MPC-5788, 1890) at 2406-10 Aldrich Avenue South was built in the Queen Anne architectural style. The house displays a rounded bay with a conical turret on the west elevation, decorative molding on the entablature, and corner boards. The house was originally built as a single family residence by William B. Dunnell for him and his family. Dunnell was an early Minneapolis architect originally from Maine.56 It was converted to a duplex in 1963 and to a triplex in 1967. Second and third level open porches were constructed on the front of the house in 1993. In 2002, new front porch railing was constructed and in 2004, new siding and soffits were installed on one side of the house. According to a May 27, 1905 notice in the Minneapolis Journal, the house was built originally with a slate roof which is no longer extant.57 A concrete block retaining wall was added to the front of the property adjacent to the sidewalk, it does not appear to date to the period of significance. There is no garage on this property. Changes made to the exterior after the period of significance have resulted in a loss of integrity to the majority of the propertys design, materials and workmanship. As a result, integrity of feeling and association are compromised. Subsequently, this property does not contribute to the district.


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2408 Aldrich Avenue South c. 1890, east elevation

2406-10 Aldrich Avenue South, east elevation 2406-10 Aldrich Avenue South, east elevation

2408 Aldrich Avenue South, south and east elevations, note alterations to chimney, first and second floor

2406-10 Aldrich Avenue South, east and north elevation


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ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two-story Bronson House (HE-MPC-8502, 1885) at 2412 Aldrich Avenue South displays a two-story front porch and a small, one-story gable entryway with fish scale shingles in the gable end. The house rests on a concrete foundation. Photographic evidence shows significant changes in the exterior, most notable is the addition of a second-level enclosed porch and the enclosure of the first level porch. The decorative spindle work on the main front-facing gable has been removed along with a pair of square shaped windows. This home appears to have been built in the Queen Anne style; it now possesses somewhat less of these characteristics. The exterior has been painted in a monochrome brown color. In 1927 a frame garage was built, it is a windowless building with a low pitched hipped roof and two garage bay doors and is non-contributing. In 1999 the two-story partially enclosed front porch was rebuilt. A historic photograph, and also the Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from 1912 shows that the house once had a one-story open front porch during the period of significance.58 The photograph also shows that the original window openings on the street elevation have been altered. This property no longer retains the majority of its integrity of design and workmanship. As such, its integrity of feeling and association are severely compromised. The property does not contribute to the district.

PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Broson House Property Address 2412 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2412 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924140042 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-8502 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Current Use of the Primary Building Duplex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Non-contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1885 Original Owner Unknown Architect Unknown Builder J.H. Ralph


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2412 Aldrich Avenue South, partial west elevation c. 1890

2412 Aldrich Avenue South, north and east elevation

2412 Aldrich Avenue South, east elevation 2412 Aldrich Avenue South, west

elevation

2412 Aldrich Avenue South, garage north and west elevations

2412 Aldrich Avenue South, garage north and west elevations


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Max H. Grosse House Property Address 2416 Aldrich Avenue South Historical Addresses 2416 Aldrich Avenue South PID 3302924140043 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-5772 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Current Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1904 Original Owner Max H. Grosse Architect N/A Builder Doeltz & Son ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two-and-one-half story Max H. Grosse House (HE-MPC-5772, 1904) at 2416 Aldrich Avenue South was built in the Colonial Revival style. It displays fluted Ionic columns, diamond-pane windows, a Palladian window in the font gable end, wide eaves, leaded-glass transom windows, corner boards, horizontal wood siding and a first-story bay window on the south elevation. In 1911 a detached garage was built, it was replaced in 1997 with a detached 12 x 18 frame garage, built long after the period of significance, it is non-contributing. The residence retains its integrity and is a contributing resource to the district.


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2416 Aldrich Avenue South, south and elevation


2416 Aldrich Avenue South, north and east elevations

2416 Aldrich Avenue South, west elevations

2416 Aldrich Avenue South, garage, west elevation


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Rogers House Property Address 2309 Bryant Avenue South Historical Addresses 2309 Bryant Avenue South PID 3302924110125 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-5772 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Current Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1898 Original Owner Mrs. E.D. Rogers Architect Henry Ingham Builder Henry Ingham ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Situated at 2309 Bryant Avenue South, the two-story Rogers House (HE-MPC-7998, 1898) was built in the Colonial Revival style. It displays an enclosed front porch that was constructed in 1950, a second-story bay window, and a front dormer with an elaborate Palladian window exhibiting great workmanship. Two brick chimneys project above the roofline on the north elevation. The building is clad in narrow horizontal wood siding; brackets are located beneath the first and second-story eaves. The residence has a limestone foundation; the enclosed front porch displays a foundation of concrete. Although the porch is enclosed, the brackets and details under the eaves are maintained and it is clad with a similar narrow wood siding in kind with the siding on the house. This provides a consistent aesthetic with the residence. A garage was built in 1922, it has a steep pitched roof and two modern garage bay doors, and it is non-contributing. The front porch enclosure constructed after the period of significance has resulted in a loss of design integrity, but this loss is not total. The property retains the majority of its original design elements and retains integrity of location, setting, materials, and workmanship. Integrity of feeling and association are slightly compromised, but are still largely retained, therefore the residence is considered contributing to the district.


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2309 Bryant Avenue South, north and west elevations

2309 Bryant Avenue South, west elevation

2309 Bryant Avenue South, west and south elevation


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name Peppard House Property Address 2311 Bryant Avenue South Historical Addresses 2311 Bryant Avenue South PID 3302924110124 SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-7999 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Single-family residence Current Use of the Primary Building Triplex Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1897 Original Owner Unknown Architect N/A Builder L.O. Peppard ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION The two-and-one-half story Peppard House (HE-MPC-7999, 1897), located at 2311 Bryant Avenue South, and was built in the Colonial Revival style at the same time as an 18 x 30 frame barn. It displays a columned porch, a second-story center bay window, a pediment with brackets, and a Palladian window. The chimney was rebuilt in 1999. A sleeping porch addition was built on the rear of the house in 1914. The barn has been converted to use as a garage. It features a side gabled roof with a street facing dormer and three modern garage bay doors. Built within the period of significance, it is considered contributing. The residence appears to retain much of its integrity; however, based upon visual inspection, the siding does not appear to date to the period of significance. Even so, the horizontal orientation of the replacement siding retains elements of the original design. Even though this alteration results in a loss of some material integrity, the materials present in the existing roof eaves, brackets and pediment appear to be original. This property retains its integrity of location, setting and workmanship as well as the majority of its integrity of design and materials. Therefore it retains integrity of feeling and association and contributes to the district.


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2311 Bryant Avenue South, south and west elevations


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PROPERTY IDENTIFICATION Historic Name 2317 Bryant Avenue South Property Address 2317 Bryant Avenue South Historical Addresses 2317 Bryant Avenue South PID 3302924110185

3302924110183 3302924110187 3302924110188 3302924119003 3302924110184 3302924110186

SHPO Inventory Number HE-MPC-7432 STRUCTURE CLASSIFICATION Historic Use of the Primary Building Multi-family residential Current Use of the Primary Building Multi-family residential Contributing Resources Within Property Primary building: Contributing HISTORIC BUILDING INFORMATION Date of Construction 1912 Original Owner Unknown Architect N/A Builder Day Labor ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION Located at 2317 Bryant Avenue South, the three-story, brick apartment building (HE-MPC-7432, 1912) exhibiting some Colonial Revival influences. It has a recessed center entryway, a bracketed cornice, and a flat roof. Dark brown bricks are employed on the street facing elevation and laid in stretcher bond, window sills are defined by rowlock courses. The base and cornice are emphasized by rowlock courses. The remaining elevations are cream colored brick laid in stretcher courses. This property retains its integrity and contributes to the district.


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2317 Bryant Avenue South, south and west elevations


This draft is a work in p

designation study: lowry hill east historic district

Documents

local historic designation

city council

preliminary map of district

preliminary conclusions

property owner comments

description of buildings

physical description

cped graduate student